San Diego Knotts Berry Farm Edition

After our Legoland fun we jaunted up to Anaheim to see Knotts Berry Farm. It was on our Culture Pass so we thought it was worth the drive. They have a little section of the Park called "Camp Snoopy" which had little kids rides and activities. We stayed in this little area the whole time.

It is a little blurry... but can you see the pure joy? The more nauseous a ride is; the more they liked it. Here they took them up and dropped 'em down. The kids threw their arms up in the air and giggled all the way down.
Of course; they loved that they could drive a big "Grandpa truck." They were quite noisy. I was starting to get a little sick; so Loren was a trooper and took them on any ride where I thought I might lose my lunch. They loved the roller coasters; McKay was a little sad he couldn't ride on all of them. Logan surprised me and looked for the biggest; fastest; spinniest ones he could find. And he wanted to ride in the front! The workers would pull him off and make sure he fit because he looked so little. McKay wore thick shoes and a hat to try to sneak on some.
We stayed until closing; and the kids slept all the way back to San Diego. They did so great; no whining or complaining; and only one melt down over not being big enough to ride. So much fun.

San Diego Legoland Edition

For Christmas this year the boys got Go San Diego passes; which enabled them to see any of 38 attractions over three days. We put those passes to work! Our first stop was Legoland. I had never been there; but had heard that it was great for smaller children. The boys loved it. McKay could go on almost all of the rides; and was easily bribed when he couldn't go on the few coasters Logan could.

Yes; McKay is driving. He was very insulted when I tried to help. Legoland was a boys' dream. They had boats; jeeps; race cars; fire trucks; helicopters; and airplanes. The boys got to drive them all; as well as earn their drivers licence.
The rides were tame enough that Mom and Dad could go on all of them. I even enjoyed the coasters here. We skipped all the play areas in favor of the rides; we have playgrounds in Arizona.
We did have to take a few breaks to rest Loren's feet; however.
We had a great time; and stayed up through nap time. I would certainly go again; there was so much to see and do. Logan said it was his favorite part of the year.

San Diego Boy Edition

While Loren was working; I had some time to kill. So I took the boys down to the Firehouse Museum in downtown San Diego. We got lost several times; but finally we made it.

There wasn't much to do; but the boys did have some fun checking out the old trucks and equipment.
Then we headed to Home Depot to do some manly projects. McKay built and painted a tool box. Logan built a helicopter; which he preferred in its natural wood color. I freaked out with all the mass of people and bad directions.
We also took the boys to the Visitor's Center at the Mormon Battalion in Old Town. It has been completed remodeled and is very multimedia and hands on. The boys got to get geared up for the march; and experience the wind and rain of the plains. They also got to pan for gold again. Later; we found a Root Beer and Beef Jerky store. Loren was in husband heaven.
The San Diego Temple has always been one of my favorites; so we stopped by to check it out and have a brief Family Home Evening. It is beautiful.

San Diego Beach Edition

McKay had never been to the beach. It was a sad fact of life. Then Loren got this really wonderful opportunity to give a presentation in San Diego. We; of course; jumped at the chance to accompany him.

Our hotel was right on the beach; so the boys were able to walk outside and play in the sand. You might not be able to tell from the photos; but they are covered in sand. It took me a good fifteen minutes to clean everyone's clothes from this little excursion.

Loren looks so happy! By this time he had finished his presentation and was footloose and fancy free. His presentation was very well received; by the way.
It was slightly difficult to get them to slow down long enough to take pictures. I got them some bubble guns at a swap meet; and they covered the beach in bubbles.

Natural History Museum

Loren decided to take off a few days around Christmas; so we felt like we got a little vacation. I got a Culture Pass from the library and took everyone to the Natural History Museum; followed by seeing the lights at the Mesa Temple.

While there; you got to pan for gold. The boys went crazy over this; and carried their gold around in their pockets for days. There was a dinosaur section they particularly liked as well.
This is just disgusting. Which is why McKay likes it so much. It makes me want to shudder. Besides getting lost in Mesa we had a great time.

Christmas

Arg! How do I get so behind on these things? Wasn't it just Logan's birthday? So for Christmas we actually stayed home; which may be the first time in eleven years we have not gone somewhere over the holidays. Crazy.

Logan and McKay were not too impressed with Santa. Although they saw different versions several times; so I think the luster was off.
McKay was quite impressed with his $1 garage sale train transformer. I swear that thing kept him busy for hours.
Sigh. I hate this. The ONLY thing Logan asked for this year was a shot gun. I think because he went clay target shooting with his grandparents and wasn't able to actually shoot a gun. He loved it. I think Loren secretly did as well.

Ah; my cute little shepherd holding a star. Love. Him. Even though he asks for a shotgun.

Harry Potter

Yes; I am a nerd. I know that. While we were in Orlando we of course stopped at Universal Studios to see the Wizarding World of Harry Potter.

The castle was actually a big rollercoster. You got to wind your way through and see offices and dungeons; classrooms and artifacts. It was fun. We only had to wait fifteen minutes in line; which let us hang out and check out everything. Because it was animated and fast I was very proud of myself for going on it and not being a big baby.

We also liked shopping at Hogsmead's village. Butterbeer was delicious and tasted like a melted sucker. The pumpkin juice was disgusting. Julie said it was like french kissing a pumpkin pie. I don't like pumpkin pie so my Mom had to finish it.

I think my Mom was just humoring us since she had never read the books; but she was a good sport and came along for the ride. Julie and I had a great time; although we do wish it were a lot bigger.

Good times.